1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a holder for a stethoscope or other articles for medical personnel, more particularly, to a novel and improved type of holder for a monaural stethoscope which can be attached to a medical garment and used to retain the substantial length of tubing associated with the monaural stethoscope.
2. Prior Art
A monaural stethoscope is a device used routinely by an anesthesiologist to monitor a patient during the administration of anesthesia. The monaural stethoscope consists of a long piece of tubing (usually 3 to 5 feet long) with a molded ear piece on one end that fits in the anesthesiologist's ear and a connector on the other end that attaches to a patient's precordial or esophageal stethoscope. Following the completion of administering anesthesia or during administration, the monaural stethoscope may be disconnected from the patient's stethoscope so that the anesthesiologist may move about freely in the operating room or to another patient. The monaural stethoscope may then be reconnected to the same patient or connected to another patient.
One of the limitations of the monaural stethoscope is that the 3 to 5 feet of tubing is cumbersome to accommodate when the anesthesiologist moves to another patient. Anesthesiologists have attempted different methods to solve this problem. Some of them wrap the tubing around their necks and tuck the free end into their scrub shirt. Others coil the tubing up and place it in their scrub shirt pocket. Still others coil the tubing up and place it in their scrub pants. All of these methods have their own limitations ranging from unsanitary to cumbersome.
Another of the limitations of the monaural stethoscope is that the earpiece is easily pulled from the anesthesiologist's ear if the anesthesiologist inadvertently moves away from the patient before disconnecting the stethoscope from the patient's stethoscope or if someone bumps into the tubing when the monaural stethoscope is attached to the patient's stethoscope. Either of these events can be painful and/or damage the monaural stethoscope.
In view of the limitations of prior attempts to accommodate the substantial length of tubing of the monaural stethoscope, it would be highly desirable to have a holder that would retain the stethoscope in a convenient location when the stethoscope is not being used and that would help prevent the earpiece from being pulled from the anesthesiologist's ear inadvertently when the stethoscope is being used. It would also be desirable to have a device for holding articles, such as rings, watches, key rings, etc. in a secure fashion for medical personnel.